Labour Start News

9/23/2004

Executive gets raise while company defaults on workers comp

Horizon Natural Resources, a bankrupt coal company with mines in Southern West Virginia and eastern Kentucky, will soon stop paying Workers’ Compensation benefits to its injured workers.
During its meeting on Tuesday, the Workers’ Compensation Board of Managers announced that Horizon, which is self-insured, will go into default at the end of this month.

During the meeting, the Board of Managers voted to increase Executive Director Gregory A. Burton’s base salary from $130,000 to $140,000 a year (MORE..........)

Resist Oppression Commentary:Once again Ashland, Kentucky's Horizon Natural Resources shows its arrogance and disregard to those screwed over by the bankruptcy ruling.The new director of this bankrupt company can get a $10, ooo raise, but they can't honor a contract that provided medical coverage for their employees and retirees. That is pure crap.This is just a long line of self-serving financial decisions the company has done, which ranks right up there with their former owner Larry Addington giving over $800, ooo to Republican Election Campaigns.My math says there is about $810,ooo in wasted money that could have been used to save the company instead of making their workers and retirees pay for Horizon's money mismanagement.So to Horizon let's just say you deserve a big middle finger from the working class.